Eating Disorders

Anorexia nervosa (or simply anorexia) is an eating disorder that causes people to obsess about their weight and food. People who suffer with this behavior problem have a distorted body image and see themselves as overweight even when their weight is dangerously low.

Binge eating disorder is an illness that resembles bulimia nervosa and is characterized by episodes of uncontrolled eating or bingeing. It differs from bulimia because its sufferers do not purge their bodies of the excess food.

Playing competitive sports can boost self-esteem and teach teamwork and leadership lessons. But sometimes being on a team that focuses too heavily on performance—or appearance—may trigger an eating disorder.